Tunneling-machine.



F. STOLZENBURG.

' TUNNELING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.8, 1916.

l 38,592. Patented Aug. 28, 1917.

FM j.,

FERDINAND STOLZENBURG, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

TUNNELING-MACHINE.

Application filed April 8, 1916.

. To all lwhom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, FERDINAND STOLZEN- BURG, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Tunneling- Machines, of` which the following is a Specilication. Y

The invention relates to a tunneling machine or apparatus and more particularly to muck conveyers for tunneling constructions.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of a machine or apparatus of this character wherein the conveyers thereof are constructed in a particular manner to resist the impact of the blow of all heavy substances in the muck when the heading within a tunnel or excavation is blasted so as to avoid any possibility of damage to the con veyers resultant from said blasting and thereby obviating the necessity of the re- .moval of any part of the machine or apparatus from the excavation when locatedat the heading during the conveying of the muck to a point of discharge.

Another object in the invention is the provision of an apparatus of this character of a conveyer for the muck which may be movably supported in a novel manner and can be adjusted within the excavation so that a part of the said conveyer will serve as a shield and thereby block the disintegrated earth stratum irrespective of the character thereof, whether it be soft or hard substances, and thus eliminating the piling of the muck withinthe excavation contiguous to the heading thereof, as the said muck is automatically conveyed to a point of discharge without the excavation constituting the tunnel or the like.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of an apparatus of this character wherein the necessity of the removal of any part thereof from the excavation or tunnel when blasting takes place in the heading is eliminated as the construction of the conveyer serves as a shield and is such as to resist damage from the shock of the force of the muck when disintegrated from the heading in the excavation, tunnel or the like.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of an apparatus of this character which is simple in construction, thoroughly reliable and elicient in its operation, strong, durable, easy of transportation and inexpensive in manufacture.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug, 191?.

Serial No. 89,836.

Vof the conveyer, parts thereof being broken away and parts being in section.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical transverse sectional View showing one of the lifts of the conveyer.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view approximately Aon the line 5 5 of Fig. 4.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the tunnel in which my improvement is devised to be arranged is indicated by the character A, while B designates the head thereof, which constitutes the working face of the same to be blasted and the muck conveyed from the excavation or tunnel in a manner which will presently be set forth.

Arranged in the tunnel A, and having one of its ends disposed in close proximity to the head B thereof, is a conveyer constructed in accordance with my invention. The conveyer is arranged upon a suitable frame and while the same is trained over upper and lower vrollers upon the said frame, for

the purpose of this specieation, only the lower roller has been deemed necessary to illustrate in the drawings, the same being indicated by the numeral 6. As shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, a plurality of these rollers 6 may be employed, each of which being mounted upon a suitable shaft 7 that is journaled in suitable bearings to the sides of the frame 8, and keyed upon the shaft 7 are sprocket wheels 9 around which are trained chains l0. Any suitable source of power may be provided for operating the conveyer.

The conveyer comprises a belt or apron 11 trained around the referred to rollers 6, and trained exteriorly around the belt 11 lull@ is a plurality of closely arranged endless cables 12. Upon each of the cables 12 is an endless series of rings 13. The rings 13 are constructed of some very hard metal, such as Harveyized or Krupp steel, and integrally formed upon certain of the rings are lifts 14, the said lifts being of a width to overlie the rings and cables adjacent to the cable upon which the lifts are formed, as clearly illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawings.

The ring members 13, when traveling over the rollers 1G, will necessarily spread, that is, the outer edges of the same will be brought away from each other, and as the lower roller is disposed adjacent to the head B to be blasted, and as the conveyer is designed to receive the muck from the blasted head at such point, it will be vapparent that the muck will enter between the spread rings and consequently, materially interfere with the proper operation of the conveyer were not means provided for protecting the said lower end of the conveyer. To accomplish -this, I provide a protector for the said lower end of the conveyer, the same being broadly indicated by the numeral 15. This protector vis in the nature of a shoe, and in the co-nstruction illustrated by the drawings, the same comprises a permanent member 16 that is bolted or otherwise secured to the sides 8 of the frame for the conveyer, and a second member 17 that is pivotally secured, as at 18, over the member 16, the inner surface of the said member 17 overlying the end of the" conveyer. The numeral 19 designates an elastic buffer which is arranged between the members 16 and 17 The construction of the conveyer, as above described, renders the same of great strength so that it will amply withstand the force of contact from the muck, when the head is exploded. The endless cables and theV reinforcing rings upon the cables form a protective sheathing for the belt, and as the ma- Ichine is operated at a comparatively great speed, the muck will be properly elevated by the lifts on certain of the rings and thereby delivered to suitable means for conveying the same out of the tunnel. It is, of course, to be understood that suitablel Ymechanism is provided for directing the conveyer to proper position within the tunnel hbelt.

Having thus described my invention, I claim: Y

1. In a machine of the character described, a conveyer having an endless Hexible belt, a plurality of closely arranged ca-l bles trained exteriorly about said belt, reinforcements on the cables throughout the extent thereof forfforming a sheathing therefor, and lifts on said reinforcements.

2. In a machine of the character described, a conveyer having an endless flexible belt, a plurality of closely'arraiiged arranged in an endless series upon each of` said cables, lifts integrally formed upon fr certain of said rings and being of a width to overlie the rings and cables adjacent thereto, said rings, in combination with said cables providing a sheathing for the 4. In a tunneling machine, anfendless conveyer designed to be arranged iirclo-se proximity to thework to be blastedand to receive thereon the muck from the blasted head at the instantof explosion, comprising a conveyer having an endlessbelt trained over an upper and a lower roller, the lower roller ,being disposed in close proximity to the head to be blasted, ya plurality of closely arranged endless cables trained exteriorly around said endless belt, ring niembers of hardened steel arranged in an'endf less series around each of said cables, and

Vin combination with said cables providing a sheathing for said beltand protective means atthe lower'end of the conveyer for preventing the muck from the explosion entering betweenthe spread ends of the rings passing around the lower roller. i

In testimony whereof I aflix myV signature in presence of a witness. FERDINAND sioLziniBURe.V

Witness: n

BENNETT II. JONES.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. Y 

